Japan’s population of NEETs continues to burgeon despite the supposed success of Abenomics, with the proportion of young people now engaged in providing “home security” now at record levels.

Accord to 2013 cabinet statistics published in their “Children & Young People Whitepaper,” government surveys of those aged 15-34 found that the proportion of those “not in education or employment” has actually increased another 0.1% from the last survey in 2011, making them more numerous than ever at 2.3%.

Although overall rates of youth unemployment have lowered slightly, it appears in no small part to have been at the expense of job security – amongst those aged 25-34, the proportion in “irregular” employment also continues to increase at record levels, now being 26.5% of the total, with those 15-24 enjoying a tiny 1.2% decrease to 31.2%.

Just what, if any, implications these statistics have for the rapidly deflating success of Abenomics is not clear, but the Cabinet Office has generously conceded that “policies to support their talents in society are required.”

The online lair of all Nipponese NEETs provides some insight:

“You can only despair…”

“I’m 25 and of my old class 10 are NEETs.”

“5 of my 10 friends are NEETs.”

“Honestly, their figures seem on the low side.”

“When did they even conduct this survey? Nobody ever asked me whether I’m a NEET.”

“Their figures will not catch hikikomori and the like so there are bound to be more.”

“They need to do a proper survey.”

“It’s obvious if companies are shedding employees you are going to see a big group of unemployables form.”

“At this rate they are going to form their own minority group.”

“Even university graduates aren’t confident they can get hired.”

“I’m 30 and last night I realised I haven’t earned a single yen this year.”

“There are loads of NEETs in my town, it’s good as I can go out during the day free of shame!”

“NEETs with skills who choose not to work are OK but most of them are just socially inept scum.”

“You have to wonder how some of these parents raised their families when there are multiple NEETs…”

“I just hope these poor souls blame it on society and not themselves and can move on with their lives.”

“I do think the trend of considering anyone not working full-time in a company as unemployed riffraff is unfair.”

“You see this NEET filth at the pachinko parlours all the time in the middle of the day.”

“Those aren’t NEETs, more like students and freeters. NEETs have no money so pachinko is impossible for them.”

“NEETs are a blessing to their families. Who else will be able to take care of your pets when you go on vacation?”

“Right, they are like jokers. They can take on any role. It should be reassuring to have a NEET available in your household 24/7 to help out.”

“I do suspect that a private security company and a pet hotel would still work out cheaper than the cost of keeping a NEET.”

“Please NEETs, at least make some kids. At this rate the country will collapse, blaming the baby boomers for dumping this on us is all very well, but at this rate we will bestow an even worse situation on the next generation.”

“I would think you should direct those kind of demands at people who can actually earn a living and support some kids.”

“I had 3! We could afford more but my wife couldn’t manage it.”
“It’s obvious NEETs will increase. Even part-time and contract positions are oversubscribed with applicants now. There were 8 applicants for 900 yen an hour work I applied for, and it didn’t even include transportation costs. A lot of people can’t find work and are forced to live as NEETs. Abenomics has failed.”

“I’m not even considered a NEET any more because I’m too old…”

“Right. They’ll start to classify older NEETs as domestic helpers and the like to push the figures down I expect.”

“There are no decent jobs… the ads out there are all for hellish black companies who’ll exploit you completely.”

“The only vacancies I see all require qualifications.”

“Or else they reject you because you have qualifications but no experience…”

“I can’t really blame these people for having realised if you work in a country like this you’ve already lost.”

What's wrong with living in the ghetto? It's conveniently located near recreational drug purveyors & freelance escort servicers. And Islamic terrorists don't consider it a worthy target for protesting your nation's support of the existence of Isreal. Real estate is cheap & plentiful too. With such advantages, who wouldn't live in the ghetto?

I'd say it's a world-wide phenomenon, rather than something just happening in Japan.

I've been out of work for the past five years, although in my case it's health-related. But I've noticed that more and more jobs are NOT being created here in the US. They are being outsourced to third world countries, and what jobs are here in the US are mainly low-paying ones being taken up by those who got into this country illegally.

I hear good things about Mars lately. Wonder if any companies there are hiring?

For white collar jobs, it's not so much outsourcing as jobs just disappearing outright, as efficiency increase.

Last year, China had an unemployment of 16% among college educated, and over 25% among new college graduates. It would've been worse, had they not have a mandatory retirement age to take old coots out of circulation and free up their spots.

At the same time, both GDP and median living standard grew by 8%, and unemployment among non-college graduates is almost nonexistent.

This is happening the world over. White collar jobs are under pressure. What little good jobs remaining is gobbled up by old ppl needing extra cash to raise their unemployed children.

Companies prefer work experience over fresh graduates, but you can't get experience when you can't get a job. Catch 22.

Hell the only jobs in my hometown are fast food and walmart. They had over 500 people apply for a medium wage job at Mcdonalds and walmart treats it's workers so badly they all quite or are either fired within a few months. As somebody who has a family member working at walmart I honesly wouldn't wish a job at walmart upon my worst enemy. It's that damn bad. Gonna start my 3rd year of college soon and can't find a part time job anywhere.

Most Chinese engineering graduates known about as much about engineering as an auto mechanic.

If you ever looked at the engineering mistakes in a designed in China circuit it's hilarious.
The ones that are good closely follow the semiconductor manufacturer's reference design the bad ones it gets really crazy.
You see things like no isolation between the HV and low voltage sides of a circuit and even omissions of things like filter caps and fuses.

Most Chinese engineering graduates known about as much about engineering as an auto mechanic.

If you ever looked at the engineering mistakes ina designed in China circuit it's hilarious.
The ones that are good closely follow the semiconductor manufacturer's reference design the bad ones it gets really crazy.
You see things like no isolation between the HV and low voltage sides of a circuit and even omissions of things like filter caps and fuses.

Look at me, i graduated School in 2000 and only worked for 2 FULL Years.
I tried to apply for work but people let me drop like a hot potato when they saw my Grades.
Now, 13 Years later, im forced to apply to those super low Paid Jobs where you get 10$ a Hour with pretty brutal work.
But the funny part is, i dont EVEN get those shitty Jobs, we have Millions of people who are forced to apply to those Shitty paid Jobs as well.
Guess which Country - Germany.
Im almost 30 and have no hope left to find a job, at least that Agency which pays me my 500€ each month paid that Driving License.

For white collar jobs, it's not so much outsourcing as jobs just disappearing outright, as efficiency increase.

Last year, China had an unemployment of 16% among college educated, and over 25% among new college graduates. It would've been worse, had they not have a mandatory retirement age to take old coots out of circulation and free up their spots.

At the same time, both GDP and median living standard grew by 8%, and unemployment among non-college graduates is almost nonexistent.

This is happening the world over. White collar jobs are under pressure. What little good jobs remaining is gobbled up by old ppl needing extra cash to raise their unemployed children.

Companies prefer work experience over fresh graduates, but you can't get experience when you can't get a job. Catch 22.

Michio Kaku wrote to MIT that within 100 years or less, human technology will make capitalism almost zero cost, essentially a catastrophic collapse of capitalism. This is because we humans are working on things like 3D nano-compilers which will put all manufacturing and service based jobs out of business or at least devalue the work so much as to be unsustainable. That means these are actually FREAKING WONDERFUL TIMES compared to whats coming.

The worlds economy is already on the downward slope to complete collapse anyway. The economy we have right now is pretty much built up on a foundation of debt and borrowing. Debt so huge that it will most likely never get paid back no matter how far we try to push it into the future. At the rate things are going we could possible last another(at most) 10 or so years before the shit hits the fan. If you think things are bad now just wait until the global economy bursts, it's gonna be a pure hell hole in most places.

This is because our economies are built on a ludicrous system where banks can take our money and invest it where they think is best instead of letting families choose where they want to spend their money under the justification that it "creates" money because no one is using it.

All they're really doing it creating a bubble and preventing it from popping by continually moving money around.

Well, no one forces you to do that, look at me, im not willing myself to work for a Low Ass Shitty job where you get paid like 9-10 Bucks per Hour.
Even if i would, i would be still on the "Broke as Fuck" Scale in Germany.
I tell you what, i may only get 500€ per month right now (I dont have a job atm), but im fine with that, i have my freedom to do whatever the fuck i want, until someone gives me a job.

Sounds reasonable. Currently I'm getting around with even less money per month. It's not all that bad. I have internet, electricity and running water. Only problem is stability. That's what I want. There's no point in having a job now that won't be around in 10years. Earning lots and lots of money is pointless if the job isn't a stable one. Except you earn enough to retire after those 10 years, but let's keep this realistic.

Freeters are more unfortunate than NEETs. Being a NEET means that your parents at least won't kick your ass out of the house. Freeters on the other hand work at the absolute bottom of company ranks, has the least salary, often with no benefits at all and are at high risk of being thrown away without any sort of compensation. Plenty of such employers don't even bother writing appraisals.

Oh right, the Yakuza controls their economy and the politicians are so self absorbed with their own social caste and have their heads so far up their own disgusting rectum.

Anime and manga obsession is not cause. It's rather a syndrome, and that makes Japan's society really sick. The sad part is, it's like the last stage of cancer. You're fucked, plain and simple.

What if Japan's unemployment problem is much worse than it really is? What if they juked the stats by dismissing a significant percentage as NEETs to make it seem as if the unemployment rate is much lower when it is far from the reality on the ground?

That way, the government will have an excuse not to act and pretend that they did their jobs, and any problems society could have will become much worse because nobody is doing anything.

I'm calling it now. Abenomics is nothing more than a fad used to reinstate Abe and his cohorts of ultra nationalists into the government by pretending that they can improve their domestic situations. Considering Japan's top down social structure, no one's going to question them either.

But seriously, when things become unbearable, everything collapses. It happened at many places and many times in the world. Hopefully, when there is nothing else that can be done, things will change, for better or for worse.